Secondary battery.



No. 657,659. Patented Sept. u, woof A. JAMIESON. SECONDARY BATTERY.

(Application filed Nov. 18, 1897. No Model.)

IIIII- I I I III-II I II I II II II II U ml INVENTOR ATTORNEY m: NQRRIS vz'rzws cc, mom-umou WASHINGTON, n. c.

I II II- L llllIl-lllllll FI' IIIII II I I rrEn STATES PATENT Orrrcs.

AUGUSTUS JAMIESON, OF ELIZABETH, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR OF THREE FIFTHS TO-SYDNEY H. GARNEY, HENRY E. KNOX, AND l/VILLIAM WATT, OF NEXV YORK, N. Y.

SECON DARY BATTERY.

SPEGIFIGA'IION forming part of Letters Patent No. 657,659, dated September 11, 1900.

Application filed November 18, 1897. Serial No. 658,896. (No model.)

To all whom it may, concern." the active material to the electrolyte as pos- Be it known that I, AUGUSTUS JAMIESON, a sible, and the perforations are formed with citizen of the United States, and a resident of shouldersf, being smaller outside than inside Elizabeth, in the county of Union and State of of the plate, to oppose outward flow of the New Jersey, have invented certain new and active material. Besides being the conduc- 55 useful Improvements in Secondary Batteries, tor the lead plate serves as one of the rotainof which the following is a specification. ingwalls of the active material, the grid be- My invention consists of improvements in ing the other. the composition and in the process of pro- The elements next to the walls of the cell ducing electrodes for electric accumulators have the active material applied on one side 60 and in construction of the plates or elements, of the lead plate only; but in the intermeashereinafterdescribed,referencebeingmade diate elements both sides of the lead plate to the accompanying drawings, in which have the active material applied, and in these Figure l is a sectional elevation of a cell the clamping-bolts are threaded in one of containing three elements, the section being the grids. In the other elements the bolts 65 taken on line 2 2 of Fig. 3. Fig. 2 is a secare inserted from the lead plate side and tional elevation of the cell on line 3 3 of Fig. screwedinto the grids. The heads of the bolts 3. Fig. 3 is a plan View of the cell. Fig. 4 maintain spaces between the elements genis a detail of one of the elements in transerally; but the projecting threaded ends, as

verse section and enlarged. Fig. 5 repreh, are sometimes utilized. 7o sents a portion of one of the elements in side The grids are formed With flanges extendview and enlarged; and Fig. 6 is an inside ing all around the margin on the side to be View of a portion of a grid of rubber or other applied to the lead plate, said flanges being light non-conducting material used as part of as Wide as the required thickness of the active the support for the active material, the other material. The active material is applied to 75 part being a thin lead plate, which is also the grid in a plastic state and packed by a the conductor. rolling-pin to the depth of the flanges, which For the active material a I employ chemserve as a guide to gage the thickness of the icallypure lead carbonate and asbestos or filling. The rolling-pin presses the mass into other suitable fibrous material in about the the perforations, filling them flush with the 80 proportions of one pound of the lead carbonoutside of the grid. Where the clampingate and a quarter of a pound of the fibrous grids bear onthe lead plate,bosseseare formed material and mix them together in a plastic for bearing-points. The clam ping-grids are state with water, and plaster the mixture on shaped in suitable stamping-dies While in a 3 5 a grid b of rubber or other suitable light nonplastic state, thus being very cheaply made. 8 5 oxidizable and suitably-elastic material for It will be seen that my improved construcapplying the active material to the side of a tion of elements allows by the elasticity of plain thin conducting lead plate 0 and clampthe plates ample freedom for expansion of ing it thereto with insulated bolts 01, extendthe active material under the influence of the ing through the active material and the lead electric current, while effectually preventing 90 plate, said grid 1) being adapted to prevent the scaling and peeling off of particles. the surface of the active material from scal- The grids of my improved elements being ing off under the expanding and contracting of non-conducting material eifectually preeffect which the charging and discharging vent conducting contact ofthe elements.

5 currents have on the active material, thus Two or more of the above elements are 5 preventing the waste and accumulations of partly formed in a solution of carbonate of the active material in the bottom of the cell; soda and therein exposed to the electric cur- P but the asbestos may be omitted. rent to eliminate the carbonic acid, and after The grid 1) is perforated, as shown in the live or six charges and discharges the eledrawings, to expose as much of the surface of ments are then placed in a solution of sulroo furic acid, and after a few charges and discharges the battery is formed and ready for use.

I am aware that carbonate of lead mixed with caustic soda or with caustic potash in a hard paste has been used for the active material and that electrodes of such composition have been set in a solution of carbonate of soda preparatory to forming, as in the patent to Carl Pollak, No. 505,125; but when such composition is used the carbonate of lead is, when reduced to metallic lead, too porous for practical purposes and has to be compressed into solid metallic lead to prevent disintegration in charging and discharging, and this greatly limits the rapidity of the charging and discharging of the battery in use. The composition of my active material avoids the use of the caustic soda or caustic potash, which together with the treatment by the electric current in the solution of carbonate lYork and State of New York, this th day of October, A. D. 1897.

of soda produces a spongy metallic lead, affording large surface capable of action in use Without disintegrating and affording freer and quicker action than such as have to be compressed. By the omission of caustic soda or caustic potash a spongy metallic lead is produced that is not too porous for practical purposes, does not require rolling or hammering or compressing in any way, and has the great merit of being capable of action in use without disintegrating, and affording freer and quicker action than porous leads which have to be rolled, hammered, or compressed in any similar way.

I claim The process of producing electrodes for electric accumulators which consists in applying a plastic mixture consisting of lead carbonate and Water only to a supportingplate then drying, and with a suitable electrode, treating the same, as a cathode by an electric current in a solution of carbonate of soda, whereby the carbonic acid is eliminated and a spongy but non-disintegrating metallic lead is produced ready for use without com- ;pressing,

Signed at New York, in the county of New AUGUSTUS JAMIESON. Witnesses:

A. P. THAYER, J. HOWARD. 

